memory_alphafandomcom-20200223-history
Scope
You may be looking for information about viewscreen. In the 22nd and 23rd centuries, a viewer could often be found at the science station on the bridge of a Starfleet, or Earth Starfleet, starship. The viewer was an instrument that was used by science officers to scan and analyse planets, spatial phenomena and other vessels. Science Viewers 22nd Century T'Pol utilizing her viewer in 2154.]] In the mid-22nd century, viewers had two halves. The exterior of the top half contained a grey scope, through which the user directly looked, and an outer white grip. The lower half had a black outer casing and, while the device was not in use, was lowered into a hidden recess below the level of the surrounding console. When pressed, a control on the console, slightly to the left of the viewer, raised the device's lower half out of its alcove, extending the viewer to its full and operational height. Simultaneously, a white light would activate within the viewer's scope, enabling visibility of its contents. This style of viewer was implemented aboard the NX class starship Enterprise, where science officer T'Pol used the device during the starship's mission from 2151 until 2161. (ENT: "Broken Bow", "These Are the Voyages...") 2260s By 2265, a viewer had been installed at the science station aboard the ''Constitution''-class ''Enterprise'', where it was mostly used by Spock. (TOS: "Where No Man Has Gone Before") In the Mirror Universe, Sergeant Mayweather used the [[USS Defiant (NCC-1764)|USS Defiant's]] tactical viewer during battle with rebel ships fighting the forces of the Terran Empire. (ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II") Engineering Viewers Aboard either some or all Starfleet vessels, a secondary viewer was later added to the bridge's engineering station and was used to monitor the ship's diagnostic. (Star Trek: The Original Series) Tactical Viewers ship uses a tactical viewer during battle.]] Lieutenant Sulu on the Enterprise used a tactical viewer when the ship was engaged in battle. The viewer, which was stowed inside the helm/navigation console, would unfold at the push of a button. (Star Trek: The Original Series) Specific Examples of Use Enterprise (NX-01) When, in 2151, the NX class Enterprise unexpectedly started trembling after having entered the atmosphere of a gas giant, T'Pol used her viewer to ascertain that the shaking was due to the ship having penetrated a layer of liquid phosphorus. Soon after, when the ship's crew were tasked with recovering Captain Archer and Commander Tucker, T'Pol used her viewer to locate the ignited thruster exhaust of their commandeered Suliban cell ship and obtain co-ordinates to rendezvous with the Suliban craft. (ENT: "Broken Bow") USS Enterprise In 2266, Spock used his viewer to determine that there was no sign of a cube that, until the Enterprise destroyed it, had been blocking the starship's path and endangering the vessel's crew with high levels of radiation. Spock later used the viewer to analyse an object approaching the Enterprise that was larger than the cube but was in the same area of space. Using the viewer, Spock reported that the starship was receiving an exceptionally strong signal from the object but that a visual representation of the object was not yet available. (TOS: "The Corbomite Maneuver") Notable Appearances *ENT: **"Broken Bow" (Season 1) **"Fight or Flight" **"Strange New World" **"The Xindi" (Season 3) **"Anomaly" **"Impulse" **"Similitude" **"Proving Ground" **"Azati Prime" **"E²" **"Zero Hour" **"Babel One" (Season 4) **"The Aenar" **"In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II" **"These Are the Voyages..." *TOS: **"The Corbomite Maneuver" **"Mudd's Women" Background Although no canonical name for this instrument has ever been revealed in a Star Trek episode, this device was referred to as a viewer in script sources. In the episode "The Cage", which completed production in 1965, there was no visual instrument resembling a viewer and no indication that there ever had been one installed aboard the Enterprise. The following episode, "Where No Man Has Gone Before", featured a scope at the bridge science station. This was similar to the viewer's eventual design but the officer at the science console - mainly Spock in the episode - did not peer through it, unlike the later viewer. Although the scope did flash in one scene, it is unclear whether Spock was using the device when he looked at his station, due to the presence of other controls on the station's elaborately designed console. The viewer has been the subject of many parodies, particularly of The Original Series. The helm viewer prop used in the ENT Season 4 episode "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II" was donated to the production by the makers of the New Voyages fan films. Category:Tools